Thursday, July 22, 2010
AFL - AUSSIE FOOTBALL! For those who are interested - seeing that Roald went to his first AFL game on Sunday 18/07
Playing Field and Equipment
The Field
Unlike other games of football Aussie Rules is played on cricket ovals; thus, there are no standard dimensions for a football field (usually called "ground" or "paddock"). The field should be an oval between 135 and 185 meters in length and 110 and 155 meters in width. (The Melbourne Cricket Ground is considered an ideal surface; its dimensions are 165m length by 135m width.) These dimensions make it the largest playing field of any code of football. The boundary is marked with a white line drawn a few meters from the stands.
The goals are two sets of posts erected at the far ends of the oval; the boundary forms a straight line through the posts. The inner set of posts is the goal posts, 6.4 meters (7 yards) apart, and at least 6 meters tall. Two behind posts are set 6.4 meters from the inside of each goal post, and must be at least 3 meters tall. All posts must be padded to a height of 2 meters.
A goal square (actually a rectangle) extends 9 meters into the ground from the goal posts, and is 6.4 meters in width.
A radius is drawn on the oval 50 meters from each goal. This merely serves as a range finder; most AFL players can kick a goal from this line, and perhaps beyond.
The center circle is marked at the precise center of the oval, 3 meters in diameter, bisected by a lateral line extending 2 meters either side of the diameter, and dividing the field in half. A center square is centered on this, 45 meters on each side. These markings control the conduct of center bounces, as will be seen later.
Ground Sizes
As we stated above, there is no standard size for an Aussie Rules ground. The table below shows the sizes of all grounds currently used by the AFL. Measurements are from goal to goal and boundary to boundary:
Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) 147m x 136m
Colonial Stadium - Melbourne 159m x 130m
Football Park - Adelaide 165m x 133m
Wollongabba Cricket Ground (the "Gabba") - Brisbane 160m x 139m
Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) - Melbourne 160m x 139m
Optus Oval - Melbourne 160m x 139m
Manuka Oval - Canberra 164m x 136m
Subiaco - Perth 170m x 122m
York Park - Launceston 165m x 135m
Baytec Stadium (formerly Kardinia Park/Shell Stadium) - Geelong 169m x 115m
Stadium Australia - Sydney 159m x 118m
The Ball
The ball is an oval latex bladder covered with smooth leather, tanned for day use or colored visible yellow for night matches, and inflated to 69 kPa (10 lbs) pressure. It closely resembles a Rugby football.
Length 270 - 280 mm (10.62 - 11.02 inches), Diameter 167 - 173 mm (6.57 - 6.81 inches)
Circumference - 720 - 735 mm ( 28.34 - 28.94 inches) by 545 - 555 mm (21.46 - 21.85 inches), Approx. weight (Dry weight inflated ball.) 450 - 500 grams (15.88 - 17.65 ounces)
Before each match, the home club must submit two new balls to the umpires for their approval. The visiting club then selects one of them as the game ball. This ball is expected to be used throughout the game; it's tradition today, but was usually necessary in the early years. As in soccer, the ball comes back when it goes into the crowd.
Players and Positions
A team consists of 18 players; four interchange players (substitutes) are allowed on the bench. Due to the faster pace of today's game some coaches are pressing to have the number of interchange players raised to six starting in 2003. A team may play with as few as 14 players on the field, but playing "shorthanded" is almost unheard of in the AFL.
Free substitutions are allowed at any time during the match, through an "interchange gate" in front of the benches. A steward controls access to the gate, and ensures that excess players do not go into play.
Player positions
Players are considered deployed in five lines of three across the oval, with the remaining three assigned to the ball.
The players in each line are usually designated as being in either the left, center or right position in each line, relative to the direction of attack:
Full Forwards: Left Forward Pocket
Full Forward
Right Forward Pocket
Half Forwards: Left Half Forward Flank
Center Half Forward
Right Half Forward Flank
Center Line: Left Wing
Center
Right Wing
Half Backs: Left Half Back Flank
Center Half Back
Right Half Back Flank
Full Backs: Left Back Pocket
Full Back
Right Back Pocket
Click here to see the player positions on the ground.
The three assigned to the ball are referred to as "followers." Their positions are referred to as Ruckman, Rover and Ruck-Rover.
Although the players have designated positions, they are free to move anywhere on the ground when play is in progress; there is no "goalie" in Aussie Rules. They also move farther and faster as the years go by; during a match in 1998, Channel 7 put a high-tech tracking device on Kangaroos rover Jason McCartney to follow him through a game, and found he ran over 26,000 meters - more than a half-marathon.
Purposes of player positions
All players should contest the ball when its within their vicinity (unless playing to alternative coaching instructions). Other general purposes of player positions according to line are:
Forwards: Attack the goal
Trap the ball in the area
Half Forwards: Attack the goal
Set up scoring shots
Trap the ball further forward - then hold
Trap the ball in the area
Center Line: Attack the goal
Set up scoring shots
Recover the ball from the backline
Trap the ball further forward - then hold
Trap the ball in the area
Half Backs: Hold the ball in the area
Attack - clear ball forwards
Recover ball from backline
Backs: Hold the ball in the area
Attack - clear ball forwards
The Field
Unlike other games of football Aussie Rules is played on cricket ovals; thus, there are no standard dimensions for a football field (usually called "ground" or "paddock"). The field should be an oval between 135 and 185 meters in length and 110 and 155 meters in width. (The Melbourne Cricket Ground is considered an ideal surface; its dimensions are 165m length by 135m width.) These dimensions make it the largest playing field of any code of football. The boundary is marked with a white line drawn a few meters from the stands.
The goals are two sets of posts erected at the far ends of the oval; the boundary forms a straight line through the posts. The inner set of posts is the goal posts, 6.4 meters (7 yards) apart, and at least 6 meters tall. Two behind posts are set 6.4 meters from the inside of each goal post, and must be at least 3 meters tall. All posts must be padded to a height of 2 meters.
A goal square (actually a rectangle) extends 9 meters into the ground from the goal posts, and is 6.4 meters in width.
A radius is drawn on the oval 50 meters from each goal. This merely serves as a range finder; most AFL players can kick a goal from this line, and perhaps beyond.
The center circle is marked at the precise center of the oval, 3 meters in diameter, bisected by a lateral line extending 2 meters either side of the diameter, and dividing the field in half. A center square is centered on this, 45 meters on each side. These markings control the conduct of center bounces, as will be seen later.
Ground Sizes
As we stated above, there is no standard size for an Aussie Rules ground. The table below shows the sizes of all grounds currently used by the AFL. Measurements are from goal to goal and boundary to boundary:
Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) 147m x 136m
Colonial Stadium - Melbourne 159m x 130m
Football Park - Adelaide 165m x 133m
Wollongabba Cricket Ground (the "Gabba") - Brisbane 160m x 139m
Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) - Melbourne 160m x 139m
Optus Oval - Melbourne 160m x 139m
Manuka Oval - Canberra 164m x 136m
Subiaco - Perth 170m x 122m
York Park - Launceston 165m x 135m
Baytec Stadium (formerly Kardinia Park/Shell Stadium) - Geelong 169m x 115m
Stadium Australia - Sydney 159m x 118m
The Ball
The ball is an oval latex bladder covered with smooth leather, tanned for day use or colored visible yellow for night matches, and inflated to 69 kPa (10 lbs) pressure. It closely resembles a Rugby football.
Length 270 - 280 mm (10.62 - 11.02 inches), Diameter 167 - 173 mm (6.57 - 6.81 inches)
Circumference - 720 - 735 mm ( 28.34 - 28.94 inches) by 545 - 555 mm (21.46 - 21.85 inches), Approx. weight (Dry weight inflated ball.) 450 - 500 grams (15.88 - 17.65 ounces)
Before each match, the home club must submit two new balls to the umpires for their approval. The visiting club then selects one of them as the game ball. This ball is expected to be used throughout the game; it's tradition today, but was usually necessary in the early years. As in soccer, the ball comes back when it goes into the crowd.
Players and Positions
A team consists of 18 players; four interchange players (substitutes) are allowed on the bench. Due to the faster pace of today's game some coaches are pressing to have the number of interchange players raised to six starting in 2003. A team may play with as few as 14 players on the field, but playing "shorthanded" is almost unheard of in the AFL.
Free substitutions are allowed at any time during the match, through an "interchange gate" in front of the benches. A steward controls access to the gate, and ensures that excess players do not go into play.
Player positions
Players are considered deployed in five lines of three across the oval, with the remaining three assigned to the ball.
The players in each line are usually designated as being in either the left, center or right position in each line, relative to the direction of attack:
Full Forwards: Left Forward Pocket
Full Forward
Right Forward Pocket
Half Forwards: Left Half Forward Flank
Center Half Forward
Right Half Forward Flank
Center Line: Left Wing
Center
Right Wing
Half Backs: Left Half Back Flank
Center Half Back
Right Half Back Flank
Full Backs: Left Back Pocket
Full Back
Right Back Pocket
Click here to see the player positions on the ground.
The three assigned to the ball are referred to as "followers." Their positions are referred to as Ruckman, Rover and Ruck-Rover.
Although the players have designated positions, they are free to move anywhere on the ground when play is in progress; there is no "goalie" in Aussie Rules. They also move farther and faster as the years go by; during a match in 1998, Channel 7 put a high-tech tracking device on Kangaroos rover Jason McCartney to follow him through a game, and found he ran over 26,000 meters - more than a half-marathon.
Purposes of player positions
All players should contest the ball when its within their vicinity (unless playing to alternative coaching instructions). Other general purposes of player positions according to line are:
Forwards: Attack the goal
Trap the ball in the area
Half Forwards: Attack the goal
Set up scoring shots
Trap the ball further forward - then hold
Trap the ball in the area
Center Line: Attack the goal
Set up scoring shots
Recover the ball from the backline
Trap the ball further forward - then hold
Trap the ball in the area
Half Backs: Hold the ball in the area
Attack - clear ball forwards
Recover ball from backline
Backs: Hold the ball in the area
Attack - clear ball forwards
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